dj bean

Bruins remain unstoppable as they break for holidays

Yes, they beat up on a team that was both dealing with injuries and playing its third game in four nights, but in crushing the Southeast-leading Panthers, the Bruins just added another team to the long list of Eastern Conference squads that can’t hang with them.

The Bruins are a finely tuned machine, and winning is all they can do right now. No getting comfortable, no cruising, just winning.

“Winning is expected in this organization, and they built this team to win,” Gregory Campbell said after Friday night’s 8-0 blowout win over the Panthers. “Not only this organization, but this city. This city's a sports city, and they like their winners here.

“So we take it upon ourselves. We got a taste of it last year. Winning is fun. I think this team is built pretty solid from top to bottom. I think the coaches have done an exceptional job at keeping us focused and not letting ourselves getting too high, but staying in that medium where we're focused every day.”

The Bruins have won six games in a row, and since Nov. 1 are an incredible 20-2-1. Everyone wants to beat the defending Stanley Cup champs, but no one can seem to do it.

NUMBERS DON’T LIE FOR RASK

As Tuukka Rask will tell you, Santa Claus is from Finland (he actually is), so perhaps Santa gave the Savonlinna, Finland native a shutout for Christmas. Not a bad present.

Yet if Santa Claus is responsible for all of Rask’s success this season, that means he’s been working a heck of a lot. After Friday’s shutout -- his second in a row -- Rask now leads the NHL with a .944 save percentage.

That’s right: Tuukka Rask, the 1a to Tim Thomas’ 1, leads Thomas, Brian Elliot and every other netminder in the position’s most telling statistic.

With Thomas second in the league at a .943 clip, there might not even be a question anymore as to whether this is the best the Bruins’ netminding tandem has been. Thomas is second in shutouts with four, while Rask now has two.

“I don't know. I've felt pretty good the whole time,” Rask said of the tandem. “I try to feel good, try to get that good feeling from practice every time but it's tough to judge that. But we're definitely both playing really well and the whole team's playing well in front of us so it could be one of the best times.”

Give Claude Julien credit for giving Rask the start Friday. While the Bruins don’t want either of their goaltenders to get rusty, giving Thomas a break of over a week almost halfway through the season is a good thing.

HOW FAR THEY’VE COME

Dec. 23 should go down as a pretty significant date in Bruins history, and not because of what they did Friday night.

Think back to last season, and what the Bruins’ last game before breaking for Christmas meant to the team. The B’s were coming off a bad shutout loss to the Ducks on Dec. 20, and had two days of practice before they would play their final game before Christmas. In those two days, some media types were calling for Claude Julien to be fired, and plenty of fans were saying the same thing. The B’s had won only one of their last five games, and though they were getting great goaltending, they looked nothing like a championship team.

In those two days of practice, the Bruins didn’t look like they were in a panic. They knew what they had to do, and all eyes were on them when they hosted the Thrashers at TD Garden on Dec. 23. Atlanta had already beaten them, 4-1, in November, so it seemed like a good test for the Bruins to prove themselves.

They did just that, getting two goals from Shawn Thornton and dropping the gloves whenever necessary en route to a 4-1 win. The B’s got to go on break in better spirits, and came back by picking up points in nine of their next 10 games. It seemed every bit like a turning point, and the Bruins still remember it vividly.

“It was almost like that was Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals,” Campbell said of last season’s Dec. 23 game. “Everybody kind of reverts back to that. That was a big game, there was a to of emption in that game. We were able to win that game and everybody contributed that night, and we were able to go into the break with a good feeling, and then we went to Florida and got two big wins. It's always nice to end off on a win.”

This year, the Bruins once again entered the break with a convincing win. That doesn’t mean things will turn out the way they did last year, but it’s certainly a good sign.

Patriots DB Devin McCourty tells Glenn, Lou, and Christian that Baltimore is always a tough matchup, he talks about how they don't fear playing at Gillette, and he's not concerned with the Reporters' question that seemed to irk Dont'a Hightower .

Butch Stearns joins Glenn and Fred to react to the Patriots victory over the Rams. They discuss Tom Brady's record setting 201st quarterback victory and debate if he is truly the greatest player of all time.

WEEI.com's Mike Petraglia and Ben Kichen of the 'Dale and Holley Show' talk about what the Celtics will need to do in order to be considered one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference along with the Cavs.

The first hour of Saturday Skate starts up against the third period of Bruins - Sabres, so Ken Laird and Rear Admiral give some Red Sox hot stove and Rob Gronkowski thoughts before moving into Bruins - Sabres game reaction

Mut defends himself in voting for Trump despite Alex Reimer's claim that he only voted for him because he goes along with whatever Gerry said. Damien Woody joins the guys for his second Friday interview.

Damien Woody praises Tom Brady's work ethic and thinks he can play three or four more seasons. Woody thinks Brady pushed the limits on Deflategate but it didn't play a role in the Patriots beating the Colts in the 2014 AFC Championship game.

Patriots DB Devin McCourty tells Glenn, Lou, and Christian that Baltimore is always a tough matchup, he talks about how they don't fear playing at Gillette, and he's not concerned with the Reporters' question that seemed to irk Dont'a Hightower .

Kirk Minihane and Rich Keefe sit down to talk about what its like to join an already established show, how his start with the station has been received, and Kirk tries to get Rich to dish on his relationships with his former co-workers. For you listeners who think they may want to get into radio, Kirk gives Rich advice that could pertain to you as well.

Kirk Minihane, WEEI Podcast King, talks to the Podcast Godfather Adam Carolla about his new documentary about Le Mans, the backlash from the Election, and his time with Donald Trump on the Apprentice. The audio quality isn't great but the conversation is.

Kirk Minihane is a non-believer, Larry Johnson is a preacher, when Larry found Kirk doesn't believe in God he challenged Kirk to allow him on to the podcast to talk about religion and faith. Kirk and Larry have a tremendous conversation about God and Larry tries to convert Kirk into a believer.

Mike Mutnansky returned to his K&C family after a short hiatus, full of spirit and some hate, and impressed on a Patriots Friday showing. Ken Laird and Chris Curtis (with Intern Kyle) have the audio rundown

Kirk Minihane and Rich Keefe sit down to talk about what its like to join an already established show, how his start with the station has been received, and Kirk tries to get Rich to dish on his relationships with his former co-workers. For you listeners who think they may want to get into radio, Kirk gives Rich advice that could pertain to you as well.

Kirk Minihane and Rich Keefe sit down to talk about what its like to join an already established show, how his start with the station has been received, and Kirk tries to get Rich to dish on his relationships with his former co-workers. For you listeners who think they may want to get into radio, Kirk gives Rich advice that could pertain to you as well.

Kirk Minihane and Rich Keefe sit down to talk about what its like to join an already established show, how his start with the station has been received, and Kirk tries to get Rich to dish on his relationships with his former co-workers. For you listeners who think they may want to get into radio, Kirk gives Rich advice that could pertain to you as well.

Mike Lombardi thinks the Patriots should trade Jimmy Garoppolo to the Cleveland Browns for a first-round pick next season. Mick Jagger will be a father to his eighth child at age 73 and the most overpaid actors and actresses in Headlines. The guys discuss Mut's internal struggle as to whether or not he should have a vasectomy.